XtraBike

My new baby arrived Wednesday in the form of a Miyana Country Runner with an Xtracycle Free Radical attached
and I am a woman in love!

I rode my Montana to City Bikes to buy it, and was then able to strap the front wheel of Montana into the Free Radical and ride off into the sunset (I took photos and hope to have them up soon. In the mean time I borrowed the one above from their website)

Friday I was able to pack up all the gear The Boy would need for his weekend with is dad, as well all my school stuff and a change of clothes and head out without feeling like we were carrying anything. We stopped in rout and picked up groceries, and still had room to spare. The new rig has proven to be a real conversation starter, everyone wants to ask about it, ask what all I use it for, etc. So it's been a great way to expand my circle of friends exponentially ~and who knows where that might lead?

Why do I need and extra bike?

*First off, here are things I need to do and carry by bike that require more than my humble bike rack and buckets can offer. Art canvasses, tents and camping gear, bales of straw, poultry feed . . . anything too big or heavy for me to carry in the Free Radical is just too big or heavy for me to carry

*I sometimes need to take the Boy places too far for him to peddal in the stoker, or we need to leave too early in the morning --or late in the evening-- for him to be fit for stoker duty. He cant exactly sleep back there, but I have already had the experience of his little head leaning on my back as we travers the last leg home.

*After a year of daily use, my Montana needs a complete overhaul, including a touch-up to the paint, which will take it out of comission for a couple weeks

*With the Free Radical I can get a bike-mounted blender for bike-powered smoothies and other beverages

So there are so meny practicle reasons, but mostly I am dreaming of the adventures I can have with the Free Radical, and the smoothies and Margarettas I can make when I get there!